Queen of Spades
by Sea Starr2
Summary: Lee goes undercover to bring in the last and most important piece of Intelligence in a well-orchestrated and complicated courier retrieval system. With all the other cards of the royal flush safely in ONI's hands, will he be able to pull in the final card, the queen of spades?
1. Chapter 1

Sequel to Just an Easy In, Easy Out Mission, found on the M Rating page.

 **.**

 **Queen of Spades**

A story by Sea Starr

 **Chapter One**

Lee Crane followed his contact into a dark alley, certainly not his choice for exchanging information, but since his contact's cover was a homeless man living on the streets it made perfect sense.

"Whew old man," Lee said cocking one eye and scrunching his face to emphasize his point. "When was the last time you bathed?" he asked with a guarded grin, knowing the ONI Agent had fully immersed himself in his cover.

"You got the bottle?" his contact asked, not breaking his cover even for a short reprieve.

Lee nodded, handing over the cheap wine inside a brown paper bag.

"You got something for me?" he asked. The "drunk" responded by handing him a single playing card.

Lee casually glanced at the queen of spades and slid it into his pocket; the playing card the final piece to an elaborate system of Intel retrieval as it held a message ingeniously encrypted into the intricate background of the card.

"Here you go old man," Lee said offering a five dollar bill to the wino while some walkers passed by. "Don't spend it all in one place," he suggested feigning a good deed, and left the alley with James opening up the cheap bottle of wine and taking a swig as if it were life giving water to a thirsty man in the desert.

~o0o~

Lee returned to his hotel room and sat on the bed thumbing through a deck of cards until he found the one he was looking for. He pulled out the queen of spades and slid it into his pocket, then headed for a wall socket. He used a dime to remove the wall plate, then screwed the plate back on. He moved to the next wall socket and proceeded to remove its cover, then replaced it as well. He continued until he had removed and replaced all the wall sockets until he opened the last one. The wall plate ran to the light mounted beside the bed and differed from the others as it was a solid piece with no socket openings. He opened the plate and inserted the playing card James passed to him behind the plate, then screwed it safely away from prying eyes and possible room ransackers. The whole exercise necessary because the hotel had painted over their wall sockets instead of taping them on their last renovations, by the looks of it over ten years ago. As a result each socket opened bore the marks of a seal being broken. In this case he broke all the seals, effectively hiding his secret compartment from the scrutiny of anyone looking for the card.

He was the last leg of a complex courier system designed to protect the identity of the Insider, who had passed on the information in five separate drops. The royal flush was complete with the queen, and ONI had strategically saved this last card for one of their best agents. Crane was known for getting the job done and this final piece held the key to the entire hand, as it held the code to read the encryption of the other members of the royal flush. Without the queen of spades, the other cards were worthless, at least until ONI's encryption department broke the code. Sooner or later they would, but the information in the poker hand was time sensitive and failure wasn't an option. However, the extraction was timed to protect the Insider, which meant Lee was stuck with a hot item that had the potential to be extremely hazardous to his health if the operation was discovered.

Only one more day, then he could blow this flea bag of a hotel and stop hanging around the red light district in this seedy port town.

~o0o~

"Mr. Morton to the radio shack, please."

Chip abandoned his map at the chart table and headed aft, taking a note from the Communication's Officer, Lt. Tyler Banks, better known as Sparks even when he wasn't manning his post.

"The latest from the Skipper's transponder, Sir," Sparks explained as Chip looked over the report.

"Looks like everything's on schedule," Seaview's XO noted, looking over Lee's movements as indicated by the sophisticated tracking system. "Very well," Chip acknowledged. "Carry on," he said heading back to the chart table.

He started to reach for the mic to advise the Admiral when soft sounds of steps descending the staircase interrupted his move. It looked like the Admiral was well aware that the report was due and was checking on Lee's progress himself.

"Is that Sparks' report?" Harry asked with a nod to the note in Chip's hand.

"Aye Sir, I was just about to call you." He handed the report over as Harry examined the coordinates for himself.

"It looks like everything is moving as planned, Sir," Chip offered to Harry's acknowledging nod.

"It would appear so," Harry added, almost distantly. "Very well, Chip, let me know when the next signal is received. I'll be in my lab."

"Aye Sir."

Harry left by way of the aft knee-knocker hatch with his guarded concern hidden behind his expressionless face. Had it not been for the intensity in his blue eyes, the crew might have missed his apprehension for ONI's mission altogether.

~o0o~

Lee took a short nap then grabbed his leather jacket; time to play the role of young man looking for action in the busy night life of this port town. It was hardly a unique cover as he had played a similar role just six months ago, only that time he played a sailor on leave. As it turned out, his contact was a double agent, one he had become intimately involved with. He had barely pieced together the clues in time to protect the intelligence and complete the mission. The fact that Holly was a traitor was bad enough, the fact that he had acted on their previous shared attraction made the entire mission very disturbing. Their intimate experience hadn't hurt the mission and had actually been the catalyst to him realizing that Holly was working both sides of the espionage game. Feeling used wasn't a great feeling, but realizing that their experience was, at the time, one of the hottest of his life added self-degradation into the mix. In the end, he overcame; completed the mission and exposed the double agent. Though he would always be disappointed in Holly's betrayal, he refused to carry anymore guilt over their affair; had she'd been the person he thought she was, they may have even had a future together. As a man he explored the possibility in a physical relationship, the fact that he was on a mission wasn't a problem. ONI only cared about results, and though Lee kept himself professional as much a possible he couldn't be a robot. It wasn't just an intimate encounter, it was an attraction with a woman he admired.

Lee shook off the impromptu introspective moment. No time for regrets, it was time to walk the streets, hit the bars, dance a few dances and then head back to his hotel at some ungodly hour of the early morning. One more night and he would call for his extraction.

He locked his room and headed downstairs, stopping to talk to the night clerk before leaving.

"I need the maid to leave more towels," he informed the inattentive night clerk currently reading a newspaper and barely nodding his understanding. Lee hung around, forcing the night clerk to acknowledge his presence.

"Yeah I got it," he answered perturbed. "You need towels in 206."

Lee nodded, at least he knew he'd be able to take a shower when he came back. He'd been inserted about a week ago, establishing a routine of making the night life circuit which included tossing a few coins to the bums and winos in the alleys along the way. The low-budget hotel he was staying in had been rented at a weekly rate, which didn't include daily maid service.

Satisfied his room needs were taken care of, he headed out to paint the town red.

~o0o~

A concerned homeless shelter worker handed out sandwiches to the drunks who lived partly on the streets and partly in her shelter. She knew many of them by name and sorrowed greatly for their current state. Still she didn't judge, she just wanted to ease their pain a little and offer some hope for a better life. When she came upon a drunk who was sleeping off his stupor she would offer him a bed at the shelter where he would be safe from the dangers of the street.

"Here friend," she said offering a drink of water to a wino, still hugging the empty bottle wrapped in a brown paper bag. "Come along James, you don't want to sleep out here tonight," she urged as her assistant helped the drunken man to his feet. James was new to the streets, having made his way over from another area not covered by her shelter, but during the last two weeks she had come to recognize him as he availed himself of the shelter from time to time.

James uttered something incoherent, which she took mean as "yes" to going back to the shelter and guided him along.

Upon arrival at the shelter he availed himself of the facilities as Staci Hatcher went about her business dishing soup bowls out to her "guests." About a half-hour later Rusty, a young volunteer exited the bathroom.

"Oh Rusty, I didn't see you come in," Staci greeted surprised.

"No ma'am, you were gone when I came in," he replied. Rusty was nearly six feet tall with sandy blond hair and a pleasing countenance. Staci had been quite impressed that the young man would give of his time when he could obviously be spending a nice Friday night out with a lovely girl instead of helping the less fortunate of the streets.

"Did you happen to notice James?" she asked a little worried that the old man might have passed out on the floor of the locker room.

"I talked him into taking a shower," Rusty said with a polite smile.

"Oh thank you Rusty. I just take care of them how they come, but he was really in need of it," she answered in her typical non-judgmental attitude.

"Well I'm headed out, I could only stop in for a few minutes tonight," he replied with a smile backed with a healthy dose of respect for the young lady who gave of herself so selflessly. He thought she was a visionary and an idealist concerning the hope of reforming the unfortunates she took upon herself to steward and protect. He wasn't sure if her hopes were an illusory facsimile of a utopian world he didn't believe existed, but he couldn't fault her real concern and true humanitarian effort.

"This is for you," Rusty said, handing an envelope to the shelter worker. "Just do me a favor, don't open it till I'm gone," he asked with a smile.

"Sure Rusty, but are you going away? This seems a bit like a goodbye," the perceptive woman replied.

"Yes ma'am," he admitted. "Goodbye Miss Hatcher."

"Goodbye Rusty and thank you for all your work," she offered graciously as she watched him walk away and wave his farewell.

She waited a few minutes and opened the envelope curiously to find a stash of cash with no note. Surprised and confused she thumbed through it, finding two thousand dollars and gulped. Quickly she ran outside to see if she could thank Rusty properly, but he was nowhere to be seen. She walked back in and sighed, the donation would go a long way in groceries and blankets. She stuffed the envelope in her pocket and called for her assistant.

"Frank, would you check on James in the locker room. He was taking a shower but that was some time ago, I'm afraid he might have passed out."

Staci went to the office and deposited the envelope in the safe, though she had a heart for working with the homeless misfortunates, most that frequented her shelter were addicted to booze and she was enough of a realist not to carry cash on her person. When she came back out, Frank was waiting with a perplexed frown.

"He must have skipped out the back window, Miss Hatcher."

Staci sighed, it wouldn't be the first time.

"That's okay Frank, let's serve up dinner."

~o0o~

Rusty left the shelter and quickly disappeared, he had his extraction all planned out. He rounded the nearest building and climbed the fence, ending up in an adjacent alley and back onto the street a whole block over. He made his way to the beach and disappeared in the golden bushes that separated the beach from the shore. He crouched down and reached for his transponder unit, activating it with guarded anticipation. James was glad to be through with this part of his mission. Spending two weeks on the streets as an alcoholic bum was a tough assignment, the only thing that made it bearable was the kindness of the young lady running the shelter. He wished "James" could have at least said "thank you" but he stayed in cover and never expressed his appreciation for the selfless life she chose to live. The two grand he left would be expensed to ONI and he would be sure to report the generous donation his secondary cover, Rusty Lancaster left upon his departure.

He scanned his surroundings and then looked up at the starry sky. It was dark and his cover was good so he settled in to wait for his ride.

~o0o~

"We just received the signal, Sir," Chip reported.

"Very well, Chip, I'll be right up," Harry replied.

He hung up the mic and took just a moment to reflect silently then left the lab and headed top-side. So far the mission was advancing just as expected, he supposed he should have found some measure of peace in that fact. He shook off any further thought as he felt the ballast tanks blow and Seaview begin its ascent from the ocean floor. _At any rate_ , he thought silently, _it will all be over soon._ The rest of his concern was locked cleanly behind his stoic face; tight lips and a furled brow that exuded both determination and confidence, as he made his way forward.

"Sir, we're at nine-oh feet, ten miles off the coast," Chip reported.

"Very well, Mr. Morton. Take us in as close as we dare and surface."

"Aye Sir," Chip said turning the chart around to the Admiral and showing his intended coordinates for surfacing.

Harry nodded his approval as Chip gave the orders to proceed at standard.

"Up periscope," Chip ordered, only one mile off the coast. He increased the range until he had the beach in sight, then dialed up the night vision, spotting a lone figure on the beach.

"Sir," Chip said, offering the Admiral the periscope with their extraction target already sighted in.

"Very well, surface Mr. Morton."

"Aye Sir."

Chip took hold of the mic. "Surface, surface, surface. Blow all ballast tanks, ten degrees up bubble," he ordered then reached for the klaxons, depressing the button three times.

~o0o~

James checked his watch, then scanned the beach to the right and left before emerging from his hiding place. His position was still secure, but he had positioned himself in front of the bushes to make his heat signature easier to read. After another five minutes or so, he just barely heard a faint noise over the waves breaking.

 _Seaview is right on time_ , he mused silently. He checked the beach again and ran out to the waves meeting the boat part way and hauling himself in the rubber raft with the aid of helping hands that expertly secured him and turned the boat around, speeding back toward Seaview.

James tilted his head back to rest on the raft, grateful that his part was done. It had been a long two weeks and he was looking forward to sleeping without the intrigue of the mission constantly on his mind. He would have felt completely relieved, except that there were two agents in the field yet to retrieve. The mission wasn't over until everyone came home.

~o0o~

Lee made his way to what had become his usual stomping grounds while "vacationing" here. It was important to continue this part of his cover to protect the intelligence and prove that he wasn't hiding anything. He walked towards the first establishment on his bar hopping circuit and took a quick glance into the alley that James frequented, noting he was gone. It was what he expected, and he was glad that James was in the clear now that the final card had finally been passed. He was probably aboard Seaview right now, of course James could have taken possession of the card and immediately called for an extraction, but there was a trail of contacts that could potentially lead back to the Insider if he were caught with the card. Indeed, the playing card was going through several agents' hands before it would be completely secure. That part of the plan was hopefully going on right now.

The maid knocked, then used her key announcing her arrival, just in case.

"Maid service," she said, opening the door and finding an empty room. She rolled her cart in and closed the door behind her. She collected the towels to be laundered from the bathroom floor and replaced them with fresh ones, then used her feather duster for a cursory dusting job. The bed was made so she left it, if the guest wanted fresh sheets they would typically leave the bedding pulled back. That was fine with her as it was almost quitting time for the young woman. She pulled out her vacuum, plugged it in and did several quick passes over the carpet, then left the machine running as she headed straight to the wall socket under the mounted bed light. She pulled out a small screw driver from her apron pocket and quickly divested the plate of its screws. She removed the plate and reached for the Queen of Spades, sliding it inside her blouse where it was safely hidden between her bosom and bra, then reached into her apron pocket for another queen of spades. She replaced the wall socket plate with her counterfeit card and returned to add a few more strokes with the vacuum cleaner before stowing her machine back on her cart. She stopped to fuss with her hair in the mirror and then opened the door and wheeled out her cart, locking the door behind her.

Sandra returned her cart to the maintenance closet and left her apron. She grabbed her sweater, then headed downstairs to clock out.

"I'm done, Ralph. See you tomorrow," she said over her shoulder as she headed carefree for the door.

"Did you get the towels in 206?" Ralph asked, his head still buried in the newspaper.

"Yeah, yeah. See you tomorrow."

"Bye Sandy," he answered distractedly.

"Sandra... I _told_ you, Sandra," she corrected and then headed out the door.

The night desk clerk just shrugged his shoulders. Sandra. Sandy. It was all the same to him, as long as the guy in 206 got his towels he shouldn't have anything to complain about and that's all he cared about, because it was a long enough night without having some guest complaining about clean towels.

Sandra made her way out of town, taking her way home walking along the beach with her pants rolled up and carrying her shoes. She strolled past the beach houses further down the beach where the shore line was rockier and cliffs replaced the gentle sloping landscape, then reached into her pocket and pressed a small button. Almost immediately, well-lit bubbles formed in front of her as something yellow surfaced and motored toward her, beaching the craft right in front of her.

A side door opened as a man dressed in a dark turtleneck and slacks, stepped out. Auburn hair peeked out from under the black beanie cap as small wavy curls refused to be tamed by the knit hat.

"Full house beats a flush," he said without emotion.

"Good thing I have a _royal_ flush," Sandra responded to the auburn haired man's raised eyebrow as he waited for the rest of the code. "I just pulled in the last spade," she finished.

"Welcome aboard Miss Striker," Harry greeted, helping her aboard while quickly scanning the beach.

"Thank you, Admiral Nelson," she replied, knowing exactly who her pilot was. A tall dark headed man in a red jumpsuit guided her to a chair in the back of the craft and helped her strap in as the Admiral secured the hatch behind him.

"So this is the flying sub," Sandra mused, clearly fascinated.

"Yes ma'am," Ski answered, all business but not missing the opportunity to talk to a pretty girl, even if that pretty girl was ONI and could knock him off his feet with a right hook.

"Everyone ready?" Harry asked over his shoulder as Kowalski took the co-pilot's seat.

"All clear, Admiral."

"Then let's get this fish underwater," he said as FS1 slid off the beach and back to the safety of the water. The sea floor dropped dramatically about twenty feet out as the flying sub submerged to the quiet "awwwws" of their passenger in the back.

"Bookmaker to High Roller, come in," Harry called.

"Bookmaker, this is High Roller, we read you loud and clear."

"Inform the Pit Manager that we have a guest... Lady Luck."

"Aye Sir. The Pit Manager wishes to convey that the Dealer has also been secured."

Sandra smiled in the back, knowing that James had delivered several cards, as well as the final card that she now held and that the ambiguous message concerning the Dealer meant that he was safe aboard as well.

"Very well, ETA... fourteen minutes."

Seaview signed off as Harry piloted the sometimes submarine, sometimes aircraft toward her home berth, the SSRN Seaview.

 _Now all we need is the Gambler_ , Harry thought in silent hopes that everything was going as planned and that they would receive Lee's call by morning.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

Lee exited his first bar, having made the scene enough to be noticed and then headed to his next choice, not far away on this side of town where bars outnumbered all other business establishments three to one. He was currently dancing with a young lady, and at present both were glued together in a slow dance. She pressed suggestively against him as Lee decided he needed to cool the young lady off. He knew it would take a lot to offend her as she was used to picking up guys in this rough side of town, so he went for a zinger, whispering in her ear and asking how much for her services tonight. His insulted garnered him the expected result as she leaned back and slapped his face. The loud crack of her slap stopped the music as all eyes looked their way momentarily while she stormed off, offended at being taken for one of "those" kind of girls, leaving Lee in the middle of the dance floor with his hands extended in front of him as if to say, "What did I say?"

The music started playing again as Lee left the bar, sorry he had to go to such lengths but not needing female companionship to stay in his cover. Though offending her was regretful, he was now free to hit the rest of his circuit. He didn't want to change his pattern, as being seen around town was the best way to stay above suspicion should others interested in the encrypted card be on the trail of the ONI agents who had secured it.

He downed a few beers in the next bar while playing the flirting game with some interested gals, grateful that the Alcohol Inhibitor pill he took before leaving his room effectively neutralized a great deal of the alcohol in his blood stream. There was always a price to pay for these nifty ONI issued pills, namely the fact that though the user was able to consume more alcohol before becoming tipsy, it didn't neutralize the hangover the next day. Still, they kept him on his feet and able to complete his mission.

Lee strolled along to hit his last bar, playacting a slight waver in his walk. It was late or early depending on one's perspective, noting he had adequately made known his presence in the night life tonight and figured he could head back to the hotel. He walked along the dark street in between two buildings, when he felt a sudden stab of pain and immediately felt the effects of the dart protruding from his neck. He reached for the offending item but was unable to remove it as his knees buckled beneath him. Before he could hit the ground, two large hands grabbed him and pulled him deeper into the dark alley, throwing him hard against a brick wall.

He reached for the dart and pulled it out of Lee's neck, tossing it to the ground beside them, then proceeded to frisk with one hand while the other pressed him unmercifully against the wall. The brute's frisk job was quite thorough patting him down until he found what he was looking for, and pulling a playing card out from Lee's front pocket of his blue jeans.

He held the card up to the limited light and smiled, noting the queen of spades before sliding it into his own pocket.

"Here's a little something to remember me by," he said darkly, drawing Lee's face close to his before he pulled back and issued a blow to his jaw, followed by two deep punches into his gut. The brute wheeled back for another jab to Lee's jaw, connecting soundly as blood spilled from his victim's mouth. He laughed, prepared to issue another blow with his victim completely immobilized from the dart, when he heard the sound of a whistle resounding at full capacity. He took a quick glance toward the sound and saw a lone figure sounding the alarm and decided to take the back way out; up and over a brick wall.

Lee crumbled to the ground and curled. He was completely vulnerable with the effects of the dart making his limbs nearly unusable.

"Easy there," a decidedly female voice said. She turned him over as he opened his eyes to see the pretty face of Staci Hatcher assessing his injuries. The young woman had learned a long time ago that the sound of her dime store whistle could send undesirables running, as the shrill alarm was hard to ignore, even by the most passive of passer-byers.

"You're hurt, I'll call the police," she offered to which Lee reached up and grabbed her arm weakly.

"No... no police," he begged between breaths.

The smell of alcohol was apparent on his breath as Staci did what she always did, had compassion and tried to help.

"Alright, but I can't leave you here in the alley. Come on," she said, hefting him up to lean heavily on her as she maneuvered him out to the street. "Just come with me," she finished.

"I'm fine, just leave me," he said, not needing the Good Samaritan to get involved, she had no idea what she was placing herself in the middle of as he tried ineffectually to push her away.

"I can't leave you here in the streets," she said noting his wallet was still in his back pocket and surmising that the guy who worked him over was either a bully from one of the bars or hadn't gotten around to mugging him yet.

"I have a room... at The Arms," he managed to get out.

"I know the place," she answered. "I'll take you there. Can you walk?"

Lee nodded, pulling every bit of strength he had into his legs. _Damn it. This isn't going the way it's supposed to,_ he thought distantly, his coherency fading fast.

The Arms Hotel was only a few streets over as Staci helped him along. The drug was strong, but the last thing Lee needed was the police involved so he put all his effort into making it to his room. They entered the lobby where the night desk clerk looked up noting the dark haired beauty bringing in the guest from 206, looking like he had tied one over good. She helped him up the stairs as they heard the night clerk rustle his newspaper.

"Clean towels in your room," he reported, without the slightest concern of the blood running down Lee's mouth or the fact that he was "falling down drunk".

Lee ignored him and concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other till she leaned him against his door while he pulled his key from his pocket and fumbled trying to find the keyhole.

"Here," Staci offered, gently taking the key and opening the door for him.

She helped him to the bed and lowered him down, then swung his legs over so he could stretch out. She closed the door behind them and went immediately to the bathroom. Lee could hear her running water, presumably soaking a wash rag. He needed to get her out of his room, the fact that the card had been stolen was bad news, sooner or later whoever stole the card would realize that all they had was a standard deck card with no encryption.

Staci returned with a cold rag and began blotting Lee's mouth.

"I'm fine," he slurred, but the alcohol, the drug, and the blows to his gut took their toll as his head fell to the side in a deeply unconscious state.

Staci wiped his face, her compassionate eyes studying the handsome features of the man before her. She reached for his shirt and pulled up the tails to examine his mid-section. It was pretty much what she expected as she spotted several large bruises forming, and decided he needed an ice pack. She sighed; the humanitarian in her always wanting to help and the woman in her taken in by the strikingly handsome lines of his face. She picked up the room key from the nightstand where she'd dropped it and grabbed the ice bucket. She wasn't one to shirk from helping someone in need, and tonight he was that someone.

~o0o~

"You fool, it's a fake!" the Boss said, holding the playing card under a magnifying glass and comparing it to a card from a brand new deck. "He must still have the original, this one's a decoy."

"What now, Boss?" the large man replied with a frown that Crane had tricked him... _again_.

The Boss turned the queen of spades around in the air, examining it from several sides while contemplating the next move.

"He's obviously still got it with him. You said he was incapacitated by the dart?"

"Completely."

"Then we start with his hotel room, if he's not there it will make it all the easier to ransack... if he is there, then bring back both him _and_ the encrypted card. Understand?"

The large brute nodded and left, while the Boss contemplated just how much Crane had cost the operation and deciding it was time to cash in on some much anticipated payback.

~o0o~

Sandra's expression tightened as Lee uttered a woman's name in a tortured whisper, full of regret. His head tossed as Sandra sighed. She'd seen it before in her shelter; a man full of regret over a lost love, drinking his memories away hoping the sorrow would disappear at the bottom of a bottle. She lamented that she had stumbled upon this private part of his life, and figured that was the reason he ended up drunk this evening. His head tossed again as she recognized the signs of his awakening.

Lee groaned trying to fight his way past the drugged dart to consciousness. Somehow his mind knew he was vulnerable in this state, even if his body wasn't cooperating. The grogginess was replaced with a moan as he instinctively reached for his side.

"No, leave the ice there, it's pretty bruised," he heard and was tempted to just let it all go and let the nurse take care of him until he felt better. But before he could drop off to sleep again the ONI Agent in him shook him to awareness as he blinked his eyes open, remembering he was still in his hotel room.

"Who are you?" he asked realizing that it was the young woman who had helped him from the alley.

"My name is Staci Hatcher, I run _Everyone Deserves a Chance Shelter_ down the street," she explained. "I saw you being mugged..."

"And blew a whistle," Lee finished for her. "I remember. Staci, I want to thank you for helping me back to my hotel but there's no need for you to stay now," he said, pulling the ice pack off his side and sitting up to prove he was better.

"You took some pretty hard blows to your side, I just wanted to make sure you were alright," she offered taking a step back to give him room.

"Yeah I'm fine. Listen, I don't mean to be rude, but I'm better now and you can go."

Staci smiled and sighed, heaving her shoulders slightly. She was used to giving without a lot of thanks in return, so she graciously nodded.

"Well I'm glad you're better. I'll be heading back to the Shelter now," she said turning to go as she reached for the door.

"Uh... Staci, thanks for your help out there," he offered.

"No problem...?" she trailed off not knowing his name.

"Lee," he said supplying his first name only.

"Good bye, Lee," she said closing the door behind her.

" _What were you thinking Staci?_ " she thought to herself, realizing that she was a bit taken in by his good looks and realizing she had just been dismissed without a second thought.

She headed to the stairs just as a very large man reached the top. Staci did her best to hide her surprise as she recognized the man from the alley. She nonchalantly reached to cover herself as if to brush an errant hair from her face, and was extremely relieved when he passed by without giving her a second glance. Fortunately, she had been in the shadows when she blew the whistle and he obviously didn't recognize her. She walked down to the bottom of the staircase then retraced her steps up to see what the brute was up to. It wasn't any of her business and it was also just as apparent that Lee didn't want her help. He hadn't even tried to hit on her; she had fully expected to have to head off his advances as that was usually the case with the younger drunkards who were still coherent enough to realize who was helping them.

 _Perhaps Lee knew the man, owed him money and things had gotten out of hand,_ she wondered, trying to come up with some reason for the large man to have shown up here. At any rate, she couldn't see him as a friend the way he had beaten Lee, so she took it upon herself to see just what he was up to.

~o0o~

Lee leaned over resting his elbows on his knees trying to shake off the drug from the dart. Staci, the young woman from the shelter, had just left and he was still trying to figure out how he was going fix the events of the evening. A knock at the door interrupted his planning as he supposed Staci had returned for some reason and opened the door expecting to see the pretty brunette on the other side. As soon as the door was opened a crack, it was pushed in harshly from the outside as the brute from the alley burst in, throwing him across the room. Lee was still compromised as he rolled to his hands and knees trying to recover, but the brute was fast and closed the distance taking him by a fistful of collar. He felt a sharp pain in his shoulder as his body numbed and the drugged dart added to the residual of the previous dart. His body went limp as the brute still held him cruelly by the collar.

"Remember me?" he asked deviously, before issuing a right hook that sent him out for the count.

The brute looked over his quarry, assessing him as currently harmless and commenced to tearing the room apart looking for the encrypted queen of spades. He pulled everything out of the drawers; looked behind the sparse pictures on the walls; checked under the lid of the toilet tank and continued until he exhausted all the hiding places he could think of. He even dislodged the mattress from the bed looking for a slice in the fabric where the card could have been slid into. Once satisfied that the card wasn't in the room, he went to the window and raised it, then collected the unresponsive man over his shoulder and climbed out, taking the fire escape down into the alley where a car was waiting for him.

~o0o~

Staci climbed the stairs again, but by the time she reached the top the hallway was empty. She positioned herself to look busy, ready to pretend like she was entering another hotel room as she watched Lee's room. All seemed to be quiet, except for a few distant thuds and decided perhaps she was wrong altogether. Still, she just couldn't seem to let it pass, so she decided to be direct. She stood in front of Lee's door and took a deep breath in and then knocked. When no one answered, she decided to check for herself. She supposed it was the "helper" in her, though she suspected it was more than that. At any rate, she just had the feeling that there was more to the handsome man than meets the eye. She opened the door and peeked in, trying not to be too intrusive since she hadn't been invited in.

"Lee?" she called but was suddenly struck by the realization that the room was torn apart with drawers opened, clothes thrown about, the bed dislodged, and pictures sitting cock-eyed on the wall. _She had just been in the room and it was in perfect order,_ she silently pondered.

"Lee!" she called again, this time worried.

A muffled noise out the window caught her attention as the breeze blew the flimsy curtains inward. Staci ran to the window and leaned out, it was dark down below as the hour was still late and the alleys weren't often lit. More muffled sounds followed several car doors closing, as screeching tires declared their rapid departure. She withdrew into the room thinking through the situation. So she saw a car in the alley, she had no proof there was any wrong doing. Furthermore, she had no proof Lee was in the room after she left as the door wasn't under her constant view. She retraced her steps out of the room realizing that all she had was circumstantial evidence and no proof Lee was in trouble or in any danger at all. Though his room was a mess she had no proof of wrong doing and since she didn't see the brute actually enter his room, she had nothing to report besides a ransacked hotel room. She needed to think this through, so she decided to head back to the shelter.

 _What have you gotten yourself involved with this time?_ she chided herself as she walked past the night desk clerk, whose face was still buried in the newspaper.

~o0o~

Lee saw the uppercut coming but had no way to defend against it as the second dart had weakened him even further. He definitely saw stars but wasn't completely unconscious when Bubba threw him over his shoulder and carried him down the fire escape. Somewhere in the back of his mind he was able to articulate how glad he was that he was only on the second floor, the rest of his concentration was spent on trying to stay coherent. Once at the bottom he was tossed on the ground while someone patted his face roughly until he woke completely.

"Well, well, well..." the familiar voice said. "Now let's see, standard ONI issued transponder is surgically inserted right... here," she noted taking Lee's sleeve and tearing it up to his elbow and then pointing to the outer muscle below the bend.

"Holly?" he breathed out in both recognition and shock.

"Sorry Lee, but we mustn't have ONI tracking you," she said producing a device which Lee recognized, a quick extractor developed by a not so friendly power, and used for ridding a transponder from an unfortunate ONI Agent's possession to prevent further tracking. It was a crude device, no better than a staple remover as Lee struggled to free himself from her intent.

"Hold him down," she instructed the large brute whom Lee had dubbed "Bubba" in their first encounter, when he had to drink the large man under the table to avoid a physical altercation. He had no idea at the time that the huge land mass was working for Holly, or that she was a double agent.

Bubba obeyed at once holding Lee's shoulders down even though the dart was already doing a good job of immobilizing him. Still, he tried to fight, all to no avail, as Holly positioned the device in place and then initiated the extraction. Lee gasped at the sudden tearing away of skin and muscle as the small tracking device was crudely retrieved. He breathed heavily and moaned while Holly held the transponder between her forefinger and thumb.

"Well now that that's taken care of," she said placing it on the ground and grinding it with the spike of her two inch heel, "we can head some place cozier and get reacquainted."

Lee held his arm trying to curb the blood loss as Bubba reached for him, but a noise above them interrupted his move as they looked up to see a young woman peering out of Crane's room.

"My Lee, you sure get around on these missions," she accused, assuming the dark haired beauty had been a "guest" of the good-looking agent.

"Let's get out of here," Holly ordered quietly. They were still in the shadows but certainly didn't want to take any chances as she motioned for Bubba to secure their passenger. Lee looked up in time to see Staci leaning out of the window, with the light from the hotel room doing a good job of exposing the young lady. He was worried for her sake but his thoughts were interrupted as Bubba picked him up and threw him into the trunk with little regard. That was the end of that, as the rough handling combined with the dart and blood loss left him with no options. Bubba hurried to the driver's seat, backing out of the alley and squealing the tires in haste.

"Slow down you fool," Holly advised. "Drive normally... I've got an idea."

~o0o~

Chip walked across the deck bearing the message he had just received from Sparks. The Nose was currently a busy place as Admiral Nelson and the two ONI Agents awaited word on the final agent still in the field.

"This just in Sir," he said, handing the message to Admiral Nelson. Harry read the note and furled his brow in response.

"Communication's has lost contact with Lee's ONI transponder," he announced evenly.

Both James and Sandra nodded their understanding as the Nose went awkwardly silent until Harry spoke up again.

"Let me know if there are any new developments, Chip," he ordered. "I'll be in my cabin working on reports," he explained before heading up to Officer's Country.

"Aye Sir," Chip acknowledged before turning toward their guests. "There's not much else to do but wait, if you'd like to retire to your cabins I'll be sure to call you when we get any news."

The hour was late and the XO's suggestion made sense, so they both reluctantly agreed. Though Lee's natural element was the Captain of Seaview, they saw him first as a fellow agent; it was hard knowing he was still in the field and with this latest news, they understood that things were probably heating up big time.

Chip watched as James and Sandra followed a steward up the rounding stairs to the guest cabins and then turned back to the Chart Table. He had already been at the Con for three watches, it was time to turn the Con over to Lt. Perkins and get some rest himself. Seaview was sitting on the bottom, there were no course corrections to be made or progress to be monitored, it was all a waiting game.

He signed off on the Log Book and turned the Con over then took his own heavy steps up the stairs. When he got half-way up he stopped and scanned the Control Room, then completed his ascent heading for his cabin. He made sure to keep his expression even, but inside he was concerned, as everyone was well aware that Lee's transponder had been surgically inserted under his skin. Short of an unlikely faulty transponder, the only other explanation for Lee's frequency to go off-line was removal and destruction. He entered his cabin and shut the door behind him, leaning heavily back and allowing his concern to reach his face in the privacy of his own cabin.

He heaved his shoulders in a sigh, then moved for the head to get ready to hit the rack. Morning was less than four hours away and he needed some rack time if he was going to be any good to Lee.

~o0o~

Staci walked the familiar streets back to the shelter. She was well-known on the streets as the "Angel of the District". As such, she was protected by the code of those who made their lives here, either on the streets or in the local businesses. She rarely had trouble, but in the rare times that she had, she always found someone to come to her defense. The knowledge of her "protectors" gave her the confidence to walk the streets even at the late hour. As she walked she noticed a beautiful blonde woman walking towards her.

"Excuse me," the woman asked upon closing the distance, "but can you tell me how to get to..." she was holding a map in front of her as Staci instinctively leaned in to see where she was going, but her world suddenly tilted as she felt a sharp prick on her arm.

"Don't worry dear, we're just going for a little ride," Holly said, holding her up on wobbly legs as Bubba drove up beside them. Holly guided the drugged woman to the car where she got in, grateful to sit and not having her wits about her enough to struggle. As soon as they were both in the car, Bubba drove off eyeing Staci through his rear view mirror, who had by now succumbed to the drugged dart.

"Messy, messy, messy," Holly mused to herself at having to grab the woman from Lee's room, but she didn't need any witnesses. Once she had the Queen of Spades she would dump her back on the streets and be long gone before she could tell anyone her story. She had other plans for the ONI Agent in the trunk, however, and smiled at the thought.

~o0o~

Bubba closed the garage door behind them as Holly got out of the car and checked her watch, knowing Lee would be waking soon.

"Put the girl on the cot," she ordered as she opened the trunk, "then come back for Crane."

Bubba nodded his acknowledgement and reached for the unconscious woman, cradling her body as her head lay limply over his arm. The warehouse where they had set up shop was on the far end of town and on the edge of the industrial district. The sign out front said Import/Export Sales and their coming and goings at all hours of the night was ignored, as the industry was known to work around the clock to process orders. He laid her gently on the cot once used in the first aid station and lingered over her, taking the time to brush a strand of hair from her face, then left her to see to his other charge. He returned to the trunk and flung Crane over his shoulder with none of the care he had just given the girl. He tossed Lee onto the floor, not for a second forgetting the fact that the skinny agent had injured his knee the last time they met. He still had a limp to show for it and intended to cash in his fair share of retribution on Crane.

"See to the overhead crane," Holly instructed as she leaned over and unbuttoned Lee's shirt, spotting his bruised side right away, but totally ignoring it. She pulled off the bloodied garment, rolling him over to divest him of his shirt and then rolling him back over on his back. She continued prepping him while Bubba returned with the rope as she finished her preparations by tying his hands together over his head, silently commending her work and knowing that he wouldn't be able to wiggle out of the wraps and knots she had employed.

"Okay, lower the hook," she instructed as Bubba operated the crane controls to bring the hook down to floor level where Holly hooked it into the rope and nodded. Bubba smiled, appreciating her handiwork as he raised the hook until Lee was stretched with his hands above his head, hanging limply with his knees buckled in his unconscious state.

"We could have avoided all of this if you had just produced the Queen of Spades in the first place," she mused running a finger over his lips, "but then again, this is fun too," she snickered as she finished with a playful pat to his face.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

Lee started coming around with a groan. He was terribly uncomfortable but unable to articulate why at the moment. His eyes fluttered open as all his senses came to life assaulting him at once, including the fact that he was hanging from his wrists. The stretch pulled on the ribs of his sore side and by his tingling red hands he figured he'd been in this position for a while. The next thing he noticed was how cold he was as he realized he was hanging in a cold warehouse wearing nothing but his skivvies. He wiggled his fingers trying to circulate the blood flow and noticed a stream of blood that had ran down from his injured arm and since dried; at least in this position the bleeding had stopped, though the throbbing still persisted.

He heaved a pained sigh out and took further stock of himself, noting that with the drug wearing off he was beginning to think straight again. He was pretty sure he knew what Holly was up to, humiliation; the first tactic of Torture 101. She was a fully trained ONI Agent gone rogue, and fully aware of the current techniques out in the field, so he wasn't looking forward to what she had planned.

The warehouse was dark except for the light that shone over his head, preventing him from seeing out beyond the light. A shiver raced up his spine as the air conditioning in the warehouse further assaulted him while his feet barely touched the ground producing a very uncomfortable stretch.

"It's the first step in psychological torture you know," a voice said, permeating both the darkness and the silence at the same time as Holly stepped just to the edge of the light. "Vulnerability," she continued, "and right now you couldn't be more vulnerable Lee. Well," she amended, "I could have stripped off the black BVDs, but I kind of thought they looked good, so I left them on," she mused with a shrug of the shoulder for indulging herself.

"I suppose I should thank you," he cracked back drolly.

"What you should thank me for is not killing you straight off, Lee," she jabbed back, her mood changing instantly hostile. "I had a good thing going until you double-crossed me."

Lee scoffed. "Double-crossed? Wasn't it _you_ that sent your "muscle" to kill me, steal the Intel and make it all look like I bungled the mission?"

Holly stepped closer, allowing the light to fully envelope her. She was still as beautiful and sexy as Lee remembered; only now he knew she was a traitor, both to her country and to her fellow agents.

"I made it worth your while, didn't I?" she said tongue and cheek, referring to their intimate encounter.

"I'm afraid not," he replied with dark eyes.

Holly laughed. "For a spy you're a lousy liar," she accused, "because I seem to remember the word, 'Incredible'," she said with a sneer that changed to a definite leer as she appreciatively gazed at his near naked body. "Geez Lee, do you have to look so damn good right now?" she asked dramatically changing the subject. "I really like the snug fit of your shorts down your thighs," she mused trailing her finger across his leg toward his inner thigh as she spoke, "but you know, BVD makes bikini briefs..."

"Holly," he interrupted as she stood close, allowing her body to brush against his, "did you really bring me here to discuss my shorts?"

She laughed again and then stepped back, losing her humor.

"We both know why you're here, Lee," she answered, pulling out a playing card from a pocket, though Lee wasn't sure how she managed to slide it into the form fitting jumpsuit in the first place. "Duane came back with this," she said turning the now familiar card over for him to view. "No encryption, no code... just a regular playing card," she sneered tossing it before his feet so that the queen of spades was visible on the floor before him. "He ransacked your room and came up empty, and now you're going to tell me where it is."

"Like hell I will," he answered defiantly.

She shrugged her shoulders. "That's not a surprise," she answered and then walked to the darkness to retrieve the hanging controls for the overhead crane. "Now let's see... this is up," she said raising the hook to take Lee's footing from him as the stretch on his body now produced new pain with his wrists bearing the entire weight of his body, while his shoulders threatened to dislodge from their sockets.

"You know the good thing about being a double agent, Lee?" she asked but continuing on without waiting for an answer. "You really get to know your enemy, because he thinks you're his friend. I've read your service record. I know what you've endured and I know all this posturing isn't going to break you," she revealed as Lee worked to keep his breathing in check.

"So why the exercise?" he questioned, as she had definitely raised the pain bar by stringing him up so high.

"To demonstrate what I'm capable of," she answered cruelly. "So that you know I mean business," she continued as the lights of the warehouse flooded on all at once.

Lee blinked as his eyes adjusted to the sudden light and then realized what Holly's game was. Across the warehouse laid Staci, the Good Samaritan who had inadvertently walked into the middle of an ONI mission, unconscious on a cot.

"I know you won't talk for yourself... but what about for her?"

"She found me in the alley and helped me to my room. She doesn't mean a thing to me," he bluffed.

"Oh bravo Lee, but remember, I know you. You're the knight in shining armor who will recklessly put yourself in peril to save the damsel in distress," she gloated as Duane, who Lee still preferred to call Bubba, moved to Staci's side holding a needle ready to inject her.

"She'll be waking soon, Lee, but I have no desire to harm her." She nodded to Bubba who injected the dark haired woman as Lee struggled against his ropes.

"Not to worry, it's only a sedative that will keep our little princess asleep for the next four hours. That's how long you have to decide to cooperate, because once she wakes up and sees my face then her fate is sealed. I think you know what I mean," she said as she walked closer to him, taking her finger and running it down his abs which naturally flexed under the stretch.

"I'll leave you to consider your options, after which I expect you'll realize your very vulnerable position just got a whole lot worse, because your sweet little princess will pay the price while you hang there and watch," she threatened before walking away.

Lee struggled again, before giving up as the ineffectual movements were compounding his pain without producing an escape. He lowered his head and focused across the warehouse to the deeply unconscious woman, silently praying that his options back aboard Seaview were still open.

~o0o~

Harry was already in the Control Room when Chip arrived in the very early morning.

"Any word?" Chip asked, taking his place next to the Admiral in the radio shack.

"Nothing yet, the secondary transponder is still stationary, we can't move until it does," he answered evenly. "But I expect we'll be hearing something soon," Harry added with confidence.

"Aye Sir," Chip replied, understanding the situation, even if he didn't like it... not one bit.

~o0o~

Lee hung suspended from his wrists for the next hour before Holly returned carrying a bucket. She lowered the crane so that he had his footing once again causing both relief and renewed pain, as the feeling slowly returned to his numb hands like a thousand needle pricks.

"One hour down," Holly announced. "I don't suppose you'd like to be reasonable?"

"Not especially," he breathed back.

She shrugged, as if not at all surprised and reached for the bucket at her feet, dousing him with ice cold water. Lee gasped at the shocking cold and shivered even more.

"I warn you Lee, I'm not patient enough to play this game all the way to the last hour. Think about it, because the next time I come I expect you to cooperate, otherwise 'Sweet Pea' over there," she mocked, cocking her head back toward Staci who was still out cold, "will get my full attention. Or maybe I'll let Duane handle it, he seems rather interested in her," she threatened as Lee tried ineffectually to lunge toward Holly.

"Struck a nerve there didn't I?" she laughed. "Alright, Lee let's get this over with. You and I both know you're not going to risk either her life or her virtue, and she only has three hours until the sedative wears off. So I suggest you start talking now, because if I don't have the Queen of Spades in my possession by then, I'll be forced to take action."

Lee worked hard to keep his teeth from chattering as he stared Holly down.

"Shall I call Duane?" Holly asked crudely. "I'm sure he could amuse himself even with her unconscious..."

"Damn it, Holly!" Lee yelled. "This is between you and me... no one else!"

"Nice try, Lee, but no deal. Duane!" she called as Lee struggled against his ropes once again, his body shivering, as even his skivvies were soaked through.

Duane entered the room with a disgusting leer on his face and stood next to Staci's cot, waiting for word from his boss.

"Enough Holly," Lee said in surrender, not wanting her threat to go any further as he lowered his head in defeat. "It's in my hotel room," he conceded.

"Duane tore your room apart," she reminded him.

"Did he check behind the wall socket plates?" Lee countered with a glare.

Holly laughed in appreciation for his skill. "Oh Lee, you are so very good," she complimented. "Which socket plate?" she inquired losing her humor and not wasting any time.

Lee sighed in regret. "The full plate, next to the bed leading to the mounted light."

Holly turned toward Bubba and nodded, as he left immediately for the Arms Hotel.

"Let her go," Lee bargained, "I told you what you wanted to know."

"Not until I'm holding the Queen of Spades in my hands," she said as she stepped forward, tracing his jaw bone with her hand. "Hmmm, this vulnerability thing works well," she gloated, letting her hands wander down his chest.

"What are you getting out of this?" Lee demanded as Holly tossed her head back in full laughter.

"Relax Lee, your virtue is safe, I prefer a man with more backbone," she mocked knowing she had forced him to give up Intelligence he would have normally taken torture to protect. "Besides, once ONI realizes that you gave up the Queen your career will be over in the spy business and you'll probably lose your security rating, which will greatly jeopardize your ability to take Naval missions aboard Seaview. I'm going to destroy you Lee, and take everything you worked for away from you... just like you did to me," she finished, stopping to pick up a piece of melting ice and stepping forward to run it across his lips before smiling deviously and leaving him alone to make her plans once she had the encrypted card.

~o0o~

Duane drove forty minutes across town and headed up to Crane's hotel room via the fire escape. There were only a few hours of darkness left as he climbed quickly, huffing and puffing by the time he reached the top. He climbed in the still open window and headed directly to the solid wall socket plate under the mounted light. He unscrewed the plate and smiled, holding up the encrypted card to the light. He stuffed the card into this inside breast pocket then took the fire escape back down to the car. _Another forty minutes and he'd be back at the warehouse_ , he thought, wondering if Holly was going to let him have some fun after all.

~o0o~

"Admiral, the transponder is on the move," Sparks announced as both Harry and Chip crossed the deck to the radio shack. He was busy boosting his gains and flipping switches to tune in Seaview's precision equipment and track the all-important transponder's frequency.

"Chip, alert the team to be ready to move as soon as Sparks gives us coordinates, and ready FS1 for flight."

"Aye Sir," Chip replied with vigor, happy to finally be able to get into the action.

~o0o~

Lee shivered violently as he lowered his head trying to garner his strength, he raised his eyes and looked through his lashes toward the dark haired woman lying on the cot. He hardly knew her; only that she had taken pity and helped him out of the alley and all the way to his hotel room. She'd taken the time to care for him while he recovered from the first dart injection and was obviously a kind woman. Other than that, the only thing he knew was that she was in danger because she chose to get involved with a stranger in need. He was worried fearing the worst, that either Holly wouldn't honor her agreement to free Staci, or even possibly that she wouldn't be able to control Bubba. The last thought caused him to test this ropes once again, cursing silently the fact that his captor had taken the same knot tying courses he had. The only thing he could do was hope that the Admiral was hot on the trail of the Queen of Spades; that damn card had gotten them all into this, maybe it would get them out as well. _That was the plan at least,_ he thought distantly, continuing to watch over Staci even though he was unable to protect her in his present position.

~o0o~

Harry readied FS1 sitting in the pilot's seat while Chip rode shotgun. They were going in with a full load, as the ONI Agents were tagged to complete the mission. James and Sandra were both anxious to see the completion of the assignment; bringing in the Intel was only part of the mission and neither one considered it done until every member of the team made it back home.

Sparks was tracking the transponder concealed very cleverly in the Queen's crown, but the team was ready to move as soon as the coordinates were established.

"Ready to launch, Sir," Chip advised, having secured his duties from the co-pilot's chair.

"Very well, Chip. Launch."

"Aye Sir, launching," he advised as FS1 dropped into the sea, guided by the Admiral's precision movements on the control sticks.

"All clear, Sir."

"Very well," Harry returned as FS1 eased through the water and positioned herself for word from the radio shack.

The mood inside the flying sub was tense as everyone aboard knew that getting to Lee was critical at this point, once the card was delivered his usefulness would be severely reduced.

~o0o~

Lee watched as Staci tossed her head and groaned, she remained asleep but he knew she was working her way out from underneath the sedative. There was nothing he could do, the more he struggled the tighter the ropes dug, the less he could feel his hands and the more he could feel the strain on his shoulders. He was still chilled, but at least his shivers had eased back as he listened to the sounds of the metal doors opening. Bubba was back, everything was about to hit the fan.

As if on cue to his last thought, Holly took that moment to return just as Staci moaned again.

"Looks like your little princess is waking up," Holly noted.

"I gave you what you wanted, for the love of God, give her another dose," he practically begged, knowing full well what awaited her if Holly felt threatened in any way.

"Not until I know you gave me the real deal," she insisted with an unspoken ultimatum and then walked to meet Duane at the car.

Lee lowered his head, wondering how long it would take Holly to find the tracking unit on the card as he desperately tried to come up with a way to stall her should things get out of hand. Staci's movement and airy wakening sounds caught his attention as he realized his alternatives were running out.

Staci blinked several times before she was able to keep her eyes open. She felt terribly drained and groggy as she woke lying on her side in a strange place, and realizing at once she didn't know where she was. She focused across the floor at a strange sight, when it suddenly hit her what her eyes were seeing, but before she could gasp she heard a soft insistent voice.

"Listen to me Staci, do what I say... please, just pretend you're asleep, they won't hurt you if they think you're still asleep," he whispered, barely loud enough for her to hear, but resolutely insistent.

She swallowed hard and closed her eyes, scared to death at what she had just seen. Lee was tied and hanging from his wrists, dried blood ran down one arm and the bruises on his middle were clearly seen as he was suspended wearing nothing but his under-shorts. It was just like a torture scene from a movie, as she tried desperately to make sense out of all this. She had a vague memory of stopping to help a woman on the street but that was it. First there was the large man that assaulted Lee in the alley, then he showed up at the hotel and Lee's room was ransacked. It was as if she had woken in the middle of someone else's nightmare, as Lee was clearly being hurt for some sadistic purpose. She risked opening her eyes again to convince herself it wasn't a dream, immediately she made eye contact with him as he begged her without words to "sleep". She responded with her own eyes agreeing to his request and closed them, willing herself to stay calm at the sound of heels approaching.

"Well Lee, it seems I have the Queen of Spades," Holly announced, looking over to see Staci still asleep and continuing on to stand in front of Lee.

"You have the card now, just go," he urged.

"Not until I look at it under the microscope," she countered, before taking another step toward him in intimidation. "And so help you if you've double-crossed me again, Lee," she warned, turning and issuing orders over her shoulder.

"Watch them Duane, the girl was starting to wake."

He smiled and walked toward the cot, stopping short to position himself close enough to take charge of their pretty guest in case she woke.

Lee kept an unsettling glare upon the large man hoping to distract him from any inadvertent sounds or movements from the cot. He knew it was just a matter of time, as Holly was once one of ONI's best agents. She was good, and even with the fake code they had counterfeited in the background she would be sure to catch the inconsistencies in the Queen's crown. _Yep, things were about to get real ugly._


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

Cool, hard, determined clicks of a woman's heels permeated the concrete warehouse floor, as Holly returned to stand directly in front of Lee. Without missing a beat she wheeled back and slapped him across the cheek, her blow causing Lee to swing as he lost his precarious footing underneath him.

"Grab the girl and put her in the trunk," she ordered.

"You don't have to do this Holly," he begged. "She's got nothing to do with this, just kill me and leave her be," he bargained. _Oh God, not again_ , he groaned silently.

"I don't have time to do this the way I had planned, Lee. No doubt that tracer is bringing someone here right now, but you're going to live to know that what happens to _her_ is because of _you_ ," she threatened as she grabbed the controls and raised him completely off the ground, then cruelly pushed his body to swing in a wide arc as he fought back his groans, all the while watching the drama about to unfold across the warehouse floor as the brute closed in on Staci.

Lee was desperate, so he did the only thing he could think of.

"You hear that Duane?" he yelled across the floor, needing to stall the inevitable. "She's going to leave me alive to hunt you down. You touch her and you'll be dealing with me," he threatened. His rantings accomplished the desired effect as Bubba stopped and turned toward him, still not satisfied that he hadn't beaten the crap out of the agent yet. He took a step toward Lee before Holly stopped him.

"Forget him Duane, he's stalling. Grab the girl and let's go," she said coolly as Lee watched helpless to defend the innocent woman.

The large man looked back at Lee and then turned his glare into a sick smile and moved back toward Staci, he leaned down to scoop her up when her foot found its target squarely on Bubba's knee, as it turned out, the same knee that Lee had injured previously, causing the brute to roar in pain.

"Run Staci," Lee yelled but then the lights of the warehouse suddenly went completely dark. Sounds of multiple struggles filled the warehouse as Lee felt his sway suddenly stopped with two arms wrapped around his legs, raising him slightly to take the pressure off his wrists.

"Help her," he breathed out, urging whoever was helping him to look to Staci.

"It's covered, Lee," he heard as Harry's strong voice offered hope, even in a whisper.

~o0o~

James and Sandra were both in position wearing dark commando raid fatigues. They nodded their readiness as Admiral Nelson gave the signal and Morton doused the lights. Their night vision goggles lit up green figures, one a large mass of muscles recovering from an injury and groping in the darkness, and two slender figures. Sandra took the one headed for the door as James headed for the large man, tackling him at his knees. He straddled his target, issuing several crushing blows squarely on Bubba's jaw before stabbing a needle into his shoulder and silencing his movements almost immediately.

"That was for the lady," James said, leaning down to speak darkly in Duane's ear, "if I find out you hurt her, I'll finish the job," he promised as Holly's muscle man lay unable to move and fading fast under the drug intended to quickly immobilize the brute.

James turned him over roughly and applied cuffs, then stood and looked around for Staci Hatcher. He found Staci trying to scurry away in the darkness and reached for her. She gasped in fear at his touch as he pulled her into an embrace.

"It's alright Miss Hatcher," he comforted, "it's me, Rusty," he said giving her the only name she would recognize, since his cover of "James the Drunk" hardly invoked a picture of a heroic rescuer.

"Rusty?" she inquired in both confusion and surprise and then settled into his arms as James kept an eye on the hand to hand combat going on across the warehouse, noting two green figures engaging in karate kicks and blocks.

~o0o~

Sandra thought she had the advantage with her night vision goggles as she closed in on her target, the rogue agent Holly Richards. So she was surprised when Holly turned her way to fight off her attacker wearing her own night vision goggles, no doubt ONI standard issue. Sandra recognized her stance and kicked a gun from her hand as the two engaged in a kick for kick, block for block battle. She was well aware that Holly was well-trained and known as an outstanding agent, she blocked another kick as Sandra concentrated on demonstrating her own excellent training. They seemed to be evenly matched, until Holly got desperate and tried to move in close enough to rip Sandra's goggles off. Sandra saw her chance and wheeled back with a fisted blow that sent the rogue agent sprawling to the ground.

"Now Morton!" she yelled as the lights instantly turned on and Sandra stood with her sidearm drawn on her quarry, lying flat on her back and realizing her opportunity for escape had just been dealt a crushing blow.

As soon as the lights turned on, James drew his weapon and moved into position to add his gun sight to the traitor, while still holding a protective arm around Staci.

"Just give me a reason, Holly," Sandra warned darkly.

"I second that," James added with controlled contempt, as Holly stared down the barrels of two guns and wisely didn't test either agent's resolve.

~o0o~

Lee blinked as the lights assaulted him, shortly afterwards the crane engaged lowering him down as Harry guided him to the floor gently, aware that Lee's shoulders and wrists were possibly injured. The cold floor sent renewed shivers across his body along with the pain that blood circulating freely among once constricted vessels brought.

He turned his head to see Holly out of commission as Sandra cuffed her charge, adding ankle restraints for the resourceful ex-ONI agent.

"Are you okay, Lee?" Harry inquired, concerned at the glassy eyes of his friend.

Lee turned his head, focusing his attention back on the auburn hair of his rescuer.

"Harry?" he called through chattering teeth.

"Yes Lee."

"It's a bit c-c-chil-ly in here," he said with a weak smile as Harry nodded.

"No problem, Lee, we've got you covered," he replied, knowing that Lee was far more concerned about the fact that he was stripped down to his skivvies than the actual cold.

Lee nodded his thanks just as Chip appeared with a blanket to cover him.

"Damn it, Lee," Chip grumbled, tucking him in like he was putting a child to bed.

"Hi Chip," he returned sheepishly.

"The next time ONI comes up with a hair-brained scheme like this..." Chip complained as Lee smiled and let it all to drift away, allowing himself the luxury of welcoming the dark unconscious void where his limbs wouldn't ache and his mind was free to bask in a successful mission.

~o0o~

"Thank you for agreeing to return with us to Seaview, Miss Hatcher," Harry said.

"I'll be happy to Admiral Nelson, everything happened so fast. It's just all so confusing," she said as Chip and James loaded Lee into the flying sub. "And I'm terribly concerned about Lee, I mean, Captain Crane," she added as Harry guided her in.

"Our doctor will see to him, but I'm confident he'll be up and around in no time," Harry assured her. "Now if you'll take this seat here," he said, strapping her in as Chip secured the hatch.

Harry was concerned about multiple things at this point. It was true what he told Staci concerning Lee, though he had been unconscious for the last hour, the time it took Chip to ferry the prisoners back to Seaview and then wait for James to secure all the evidence he could find in the warehouse. But though Lee looked uncomfortable, he rather thought he was more exhausted than anything, the fact that he was still shivering was somewhat concerning, but he was sure Doc would have him fixed up in no time.

Right now, he was more concerned with getting the team out of Dodge before their activities here were noted. There had been no involvement with the local authorities, no courtesy call to diplomats and no recognition of official activity on foreign soil. ONI wasn't taking any chances of losing an extradition order to secure their rogue agent. She was a traitor, she had too many connections, knew too many agents, and was a time bomb that the agency couldn't afford _not_ to defuse.

Harry took off from the empty parking lot behind the warehouse, grateful that they were beating sunrise, though only by an hour.

"This is fantastic," Staci commented out loud.

"Just wait till we submerge," James said leaning over from the back seat next to hers.

Staci sighed. "You know, it's still hard to believe you fooled me for two weeks, Rusty... I mean James," she corrected herself.

"I'm sorry about that, it was my job," he explained. "But I've got to tell you, it was a whole lot more bearable having the shelter to go to," he admitted with a smile, having lived on the streets for two weeks, save for those times he ended up in the shelter for his only hot meals.

"I still don't understand what this is all about," she replied watching the windows in front of her as FS1 began its descent for the water. "Oh my," she whispered as James reached over and patted her hand reassuringly.

"Don't worry, it's a piece of cake," he offered with a smile.

"If you say so," she replied in a whisper.

The entry was smooth despite their great speed as the wonder vessel changed functions from air to sea seamlessly. Within minutes they were approaching Seaview, her windows bright and inviting as Staci blew a breath of wonder and amazement out. Moments later the flying sub was docked and the top hatch was cracked.

"Chief Sharkey will see you to sickbay, Miss Hatcher," Harry advised, "we'll be along shortly."

"I'll stay with her, Sir," James offered as Harry nodded his approval.

An airy breath from the bunk caught Harry's attention as Lee blinked his eyes open and tried to rise.

"Easy there, Lee. I'm afraid you're taking the grand tour to sickbay," Harry said.

He fell backwards, his shoulders still aching and suddenly realizing that he still wasn't dressed under the blanket as another shiver raced up his back.

"No ladders until Doc gives the okay," Harry said, laying down the law.

He nodded his surrender as Harry offered a pat to his shoulder then turned toward the detail.

"Alright men, let's get to it."

They raised the stretcher for the vertical lift as strong arms pulled him the rest of the way onto the deck, setting him down to assess his condition before continuing on.

"How are you doing, Skipper?" Ski asked from the handhold at his head.

"I'm fine, Ski... just tired," he said with a small half-smile and then closed his eyes for the rest of the ride to sickbay.

~o0o~

"How are you, Miss Hatcher?" Harry asked as he entered sickbay behind Lee's stretcher.

"The doctor did a quick check and other than being a bit shaky he says I'm fine," she answered, watching as Lee was transferred to the exam gurney.

"Probably something a meal and hot coffee will clear up," Harry advised.

"That's just what Dr. Jamieson suggested," she admitted.

"Fine, James why don't you show our guest to the Wardroom. After that, meet me in the Nose and we'll take care of the debriefing."

Staci nodded, "Coffee sounds good right now."

Harry smiled and then let it fade as the pair cleared the sickbay door, then moved closer to hear the conversation between Will and Lee.

" _Two_ darts?" Jamieson said with a crinkled brow, as he cleaned Lee's injured arm.

"Mostly a muscle relaxer and sedative I'd guess... nothing drastic," Lee explained.

Jamieson raised his eyebrow and rolled his eyes at the last statement. "In other words, it incapacitated you, but once it wore off you felt 'fine'?"

"Yeah, pretty much."

"Okay Skipper, Tony here is going to draw blood and confirm your self-diagnosis that the drug is out of your system, and we'll get this wound patched up. As for the rope burns, I have a salve that should prevent them from scarring. You were fortunate on your shoulders, I won't insist on immobilizing them completely if you agree to some ground rules," he advised. "No ladders and you're on weight restriction for the next four or five days, other than that I'm afraid it's just aspirin for the aches until those muscles and tendons heal."

"Can't seem to shake the chill," Lee admitted.

"I know. We're going to settle you into a bunk with some heated blankets and a warm saline solution. I expect after a good night's sleep and a meal you'll be ready to recover in your cabin," he replied with his doctor's tone that brooked no arguments but still managed to be gentle and kind. "I would also like to give you something stronger for the pain, it will put you out but you'll feel better the next time you wake."

"Okay Doc, sounds good," he replied, ready for the 'feel better' part.

Will finished with a careful hand on his shoulder and then stepped back to confer with the Admiral as the corpsman drew the blood samples.

"How is he, Will?" Harry inquired, pretty much knowing the score but wanting the official version.

"He's going to be fine," Jamieson replied with a smile. "A full list of aches, pains, bruises and drugs, but nothing our Captain can't weather," he finished and then sighed. "I'm afraid I'm with Chip on this one," he continued, "ONI's scheme could have backfired if she hadn't wanted that card more badly than her revenge," he added, not one to usually complain about official matters.

"I know Will, but it wasn't just ONI, Lee wanted to bring her in as well," Harry reminded his friend of many years before continuing.

His attention diverted back to the gurney where the corpsman was finishing up.

"I think I'll check in with Lee."

"Aye Sir," Will agreed, knowing it was just the thing his patient needed right now.

~o0o~

"Lee? How are you feeling, lad?" Harry asked his groggy captain.

"I'm good, Harry. How's Staci?"

"She's fine, Doc checked her out and released her."

"I really don't know anything about her," he said tiredly. "She helped me out of the alley and to my hotel room, that's pretty much all I know."

"I'm headed to the debriefing now, but from what James told me, she runs the Shelter in the neighborhood."

Lee nodded, suppressing a yawn. "That explains her willingness to get involved," he replied with a slight memory of her telling him the same.

Harry smiled at Lee's attempt to stay awake.

"Why don't we let Doc finish up here, and I'll fill you in later?" he suggested, satisfied to have even this brief talk with Lee to assure himself all was well.

"Sounds good, and Harry... thanks for being there, you were right on time."

Harry nodded, grateful that the mission had been a success on all fronts; the Queen of Spades had been secured, the traitor was in the brig, and Lee Crane was still alive.

On that thought, he left sickbay and headed for the Nose to debrief two ONI agents and one homeless shelter worker; he was especially interested in finding out how Staci Hatcher ended up in the middle of an ONI operation.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

Harry, James and Sandra all convened in the Nose along with Staci to tie up the loose ends that occur when a civilian inadvertently finds themselves right smack dab in the middle of a high level undercover operation.

"Before we begin, Miss Hatcher," Harry started, sitting at the head of the table with his hands folded before him, "I must admonish you to complete secrecy. The matters we discuss here are to remain in your guarded care to be discussed with no one. At the end of this debriefing you will be asked to sign a Pledge of Confidentiality. Do you agree to this stipulation?"

"Yes."

"Very well," he added with a small smile to take the edge off his previous tone. A thorough ONI background check had already confirmed Staci Hatcher as everything she portrayed herself to be, giving the powers that be the confidence to conduct the debriefing. "Be assured that nothing I tell you will put you in harm's way; I will not be divulging the Top Secret elements and will be speaking in generalities only. But as you were abducted, drugged and threatened, we feel it only right to help you understand the events that you were inadvertently drawn into."

"Thank you Admiral Nelson, and please be assured that I take the confidentiality of the matter very seriously."

"Fine, let's proceed. As you are now aware; James, Sandra and Lee were involved in an undercover operation for the Office of Naval Intelligence. A sophisticated series of exchanges were made from courier to courier with the final courier being Lee."

"That's the card that Holly woman spoke of," Staci interjected.

"Yes, a playing card containing vital information," Harry agreed without giving details and keeping the fact that there was a secret Insider completely hidden from her. "Lee was chosen to be the final courier because of his history with Holly."

Staci leaned forward, interested in where this next statement was going.

"About six months ago they were on assignment and Lee discovered that she was a double agent..."

"So you used Lee to bring her out into the open?" she interrupted somewhat shocked.

"Yes," Harry replied matter-of-factly. "The intelligence was well-protected and by design the final courier was in fact Sandra here. But the leaked word on the street was that Lee was still in possession of the card. When you found Lee in the alley, he had just passed a decoy card to the muscle man, that decoy card was to ensure that Holly herself would get involved. You found yourself in the middle of that plan when you aided Lee back to the hotel."

"That's why he was in such a hurry to get of rid of me," she realized. "I could tell he wasn't ungrateful, but he didn't want my help even though he was... drunk and hurt."

"He wasn't drunk, even though you smelled alcohol," James interjected, "just as I was never drunk when I played the wino."

"Oh come on, James," Staci begged to differ. "I saw you, remember? You reeked of it."

"True, but both Lee and I used a special pill that counters the alcohol."

"Lee was drugged in the alley because Holly was well aware of his skills in self-defense," Harry continued, taking back the conversation.

"I see," Staci said with a nod, understanding his condition a little better.

"Now here's where we need _you_ to fill _us_ in," Harry coached.

"Like I said, Lee was in a hurry to get rid of me, but on my way out I saw the big guy from the alley. He didn't recognize me so I went all the way down to the bottom of the stairs and climbed back up slowly. By the time I got back to the top, the hall was empty. I waited for about... oh... I don't know, ten minutes, and then decided to check on Lee. No one answered from his room and I was worried, and I'm not really good at walking away when I think someone needs help," she explained. "Anyway, I went in. The room was a mess, it had been completely ransacked. The window was open and I distinctly remember it being closed before. I heard something outside and looked down in the alley below and saw a car. I couldn't see anyone but I heard muffled voices and then the car sped away. I realized that other than a messy room, I had no proof that Lee was in danger, so I left intending to go back to the Shelter and think things through. That's when Holly approached me asking for directions, the next thing I knew I was waking up in a strange place with Lee in front of me... hanging there..." she stopped to compose herself.

"He told me to pretend like I was asleep and they wouldn't hurt me. I closed my eyes, but I could hear everything going on. She was furious when she found out that he had tricked her and gave her the wrong card..."

"That was the _second_ decoy card, only _that_ card had a tracking device on it. Lee knew we were on our way and he was doing everything he could to stall."

"Yes, I could hear it in his voice... he begged her to just kill him and let me go, he threatened Duane and then everything went dark."

"That's where _we_ pick it back up," Harry said with a smile. "We knew that once the tracking device went active that it would lead us directly to Holly and we hoped to Lee as well. That part worked; what we were all surprised with was finding _you_ there," he finished. "I'm truly sorry that your act of kindness toward your fellow man actually brought you into a very serious and potentially dangerous situation."

"I couldn't have done anything differently," she said with a shrug.

Harry smiled, "I'm starting to see that pattern in you," he complimented to her slight blush.

"There's one thing I don't understand, Admiral," she asked.

"Go on."

"The chance you took that Holly wouldn't just kill Lee outright if you knew her motive of revenge was so strong."

"It was a small chance, but not likely. You see, whatever retribution she had in store for Lee, she intended to collect on the Intelligence first. The last card would have insured her a fortune; in her line of work she needs the payout even _before_ revenge."

"But to order a man to participate..."

"Lee wasn't ordered," Harry corrected. "He volunteered, just as James and Staci did," he said noting the honor of the two ONI Agents sitting at the table as both lowered their heads. Staci noticed the solemn mood that fell across the table like a blanket as Harry continued.

"Three months ago, a list was offered on the black market... a list of all ONI Agents in current service. As proof that the list was legitimate Holly offered the name of one agent... her name was Alicia; she was on assignment in Venice at the time."

Harry sighed as Staci lowered her eyes, recognizing Alicia's name as the one Lee anguished for in his dream.

"She was murdered as a direct result of the leak with a poisoned tipped knife in her back... and died in Lee's arms."

Staci gasped, realizing now the root of Lee's tortured call and obvious regret in his voice, but kept it to herself out of respect for his privacy.

"Ever since then, the list has been bidding higher and higher," Harry continued. "Just last month, she leaked another name, presumably needing instant cash and not ready to let go of the entire list yet while she negotiated with a new player. That agent was on assignment at the time, his cover was blown and barely got out with his life, though not without consequence... he was shot in the back and left for dead. He survived but is now paralyzed."

Tears welled in Staci's eyes then slid down her cheek, as she spoke.

"I'm so honored to be here with you all," she offered sincerely, making eye contact with both James and Sandra. "You all risked so much, and you're all so brave... thank you for sharing this with me."

"We count _you_ among the brave, Miss Hatcher," Harry added. "You certainly showed your mettle out there today."

The moment lingered before Harry slid over a document for her to sign; a vow of silence of all events and the promise to keep all the agents' identities secure, though the only last names she knew were the Admiral's and Lee's. Staci read the document and signed her name, then slid it back over to Harry.

"In your own way, Miss Hatcher, you helped to save the life of every agent on that list," Harry added solemnly.

"I'm not sure what you mean?"

"It's not the way any of us would have planned or even wished," Harry circumscribed, "but your involvement turned out to be critical. By taking Lee back to his hotel room, you made sure that he was easily available to abduct. He wouldn't have given up the second decoy with the tracker unit unless Holly was present, the abduction was critical to bringing her in."

"Thank you Admiral Nelson, but I don't feel like a hero; not like all of you... but I'm glad that I was able to help... even if I did manage to sleep through most of it," she joked.

Everyone joined in with a much needed round of laughter breaking the heavy mood, before Harry spoke again.

"Now, it's been a long night for all of us. I suggest we all take a much deserved rest and meet for dinner, then we can return you to shore at night fall, Miss Hatcher," Harry said, indicating the need to keep their presence here secret by reinserting her under the cover of night.

"Thank you, Admiral Nelson," Staci returned.

"I'll show you to your cabin, Staci," Sandra offered, "it's right next to mine."

Harry stood as the two women and James left the table, then sat back down and gazed out Seaview's windows remembering the mission in Venice and the desperate search for both Lee and the tune that would unlock secret defense data vital to US security. Lee had returned sporting a bullet wound in the arm, and a wounded heart that still bled for his dead partner. The sorrow compounded when he found out how Alicia's cover was blown after their own underground sources revealed Holly's betrayal of her once fellow agent.

He only hoped capturing Holly Richards would help to heal the wound Lee carried for not being able to protect Alicia, and having to abandon her body in the gondola in order to escape with the tune in his head.

 _Perhaps Lee can finally find closure,_ Harry hoped then stood, deciding to take his own good advice and get some rest before dinner. He headed up the staircase feeling renewed sadness for the lost agent, and gratefulness that the nightmare Holly Richards created was finally over.

/

/

 **A/N** – Short chapter, I know, but stay with me, we're almost there!


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

Lee was grateful for the privacy of his cabin to shower and change. He had woken eight hours after Doc's pain medicine wore off, which he suspected was laced with a nice little sedative to boot, but at least he did feel better. True to Jamieson's word, he was released from sickbay and appreciated the solitude of his cabin to shower and wash away the mission. He used his Captain's prerogative and indulged an extra few minutes under the water to let the heat loosen his shoulder muscles before drying off and wrapping a towel around his waist while he shaved.

He toweled his face dry and stopped to look in the mirror for a moment, grateful that this time all the injuries were hidden under his clothing, with the best hidden one the pain he still felt in his heart. He had put on a brave show for everyone after returning from Venice, but he couldn't get Alicia's death out of his mind.

They had worked well together, their natural chemistry had made believers of everyone that they were two young lovers who had met on holiday in Venice, that is, before everything went wrong. They picked up their first tail at the restaurant and spotted another walking toward the hotel. They kept moving onward spotting a series of tails they couldn't seem to shake; before they knew it, they were at a gondola dock. It seemed like the perfect place to finally get the privacy they needed for Alicia to deliver the final code, in the form of a musical tune. The tune, when sung correctly, was a key to open the data already retrieved by ONI utilizing sonic impulses to unlock the gibberish and reveal the secret missile defense data.

After successfully teaching him the tune, they risked communications with Seaview. Alicia sung the tune but before she could finish she was mortally wounded, using her dying words to give Lee the instructions to the safe house. Lee hung his head... he'd been through it all before. Alicia knew the tune best, it made sense for her to recite it. Maybe he should have realized that they had been corralled into taking that particular gondola bay by their tails in the first place, but no matter how many times he tortured himself by replaying the mission, it always came out the same; Alicia was dead.

He had no time to grieve for his partner that night; he was now the only person left with the tune to unlock the code, as even the designer, Dr. Leonetti, had been murdered to keep it out of their hands. As it turned out, Staglione had intercepted the same data, and decided to capture the captain for the code. If Harry hadn't of out-witted the Count, he no doubt would have been singing the tune for his enemies under the influence of a powerful truth serum.

None of it made any sense, until ONI's network of buyers in the black market discovered the sale of Alicia's name and assignment to Staglione's organization. It would appear that Holly had recognized Alicia on assignment and sold her out in order to validate her list to potential buyers.

He sighed heavily, because here was the crux of the matter; Holly Richards, a woman he'd been attracted to and indeed, indulged in a physical relationship with, had sold out her fellow ONI agents to fill her coffers. Lee tossed the towel into the hamper with vigor, disgusted with the whole thing and reached for his clothes, sliding on his skivvies and scoffing to himself at the sight he must have been hanging from his hands when Harry arrived.

He was tired of thinking about it, but it all came down to Alicia's cover being blown. If Holly Richards hadn't of sold Alicia out, they would have _all_ made it out of Venice alive... he was sure of it.

When he found out another name had been sold he approached ONI with a plan to bring Holly in. Several weeks later Admiral Cushings contacted him with an opportunity to do just that. A legitimate intelligence retrieval mission that was big enough to capture Holly's attention and leaked perfectly to expose elements of the mission only after the Insider had cleared out and the rest of the Royal Flush had safely been retrieved. Then they leaked the final bait, Lee Crane's possession of the final card, the one that would make or break the whole mission... the Queen of Spades. That leak had been made once Sandra had successfully retrieved the encrypted card. Consequently, when he was assaulted in the alley he knew that both Sandra and the card were safe. Everything from that point on was for the sole purpose of bringing in Holly Richards.

 _At least this time there were no body bags_ , he thought as he finished his tie, relieved that Staci was unharmed. Now _there_ was a contrast, two women on the opposite ends of a pendulum. Staci, a woman who devoted her life to serving her fellow man, people most others would throw away without a second thought; and Holly, the lowest snake of a woman he'd ever come across.

He shook off the thought and took one last look in the mirror, making sure that he had shed his ONI cover and was now presenting himself as Seaview's Skipper. The knock on the door was expected as Lee moved to his desk and answered.

"Come in."

"Hello Captain Crane," Staci greeted with a shy smile, "you wanted to see me?"

Lee moved from behind his desk and offered her one of the two guest chairs.

"Please, after everything we've been through, just call me Lee," he invited with a smile, losing all the remnants of the dark mood he had sported earlier.

"And are we friends enough to tell you that I prefer your uniform much better than..." Lee held is command face steady, ready for her to talk about his BVDs, "your jeans?" she finished to his relieved chuckle. "Actually I'm just kidding, but you must know how surprised I was to find out who you really were," she explained with a smile.

Lee nodded his understanding as they both sat down.

"I wanted a chance to talk with you privately before we put you to shore," Lee explained, knowing that dinner wouldn't afford that luxury, "to thank you for your kindness. I wasn't able to thank you properly while undercover."

"That's not necessary, Lee. I understand the important job you were doing, and I can't thank you enough for all you did to protect me." She lowered her head. "I know you're probably used to all this intrigue, but for me it was quite a shock. I didn't hear much, but from what I did hear you were doing everything you could to keep that brute away from me," she replied honestly.

"I wish I could have done more," he added sincerely.

"Lee," she replied sincerely, "I know I couldn't have been in better hands."

He laughed. "Are we remembering the same mission?" he joked knowing he'd spent most of it suspended from an overhead crane.

"Yes we are," she replied joining him in light laughter, "but I'm well aware that you knew that Admiral Nelson was on his way and that you purposely placed yourself in peril, in order to bring in the double agent."

Lee lowered his eyes and then raised them. "I would have preferred meeting you under different circumstances," he said.

"We don't often get to choose our circumstances, but now that you know where I live and work, you can always come visit," she offered with a shy smile.

"I'd really like that," he answered as she caught the sincerity in his incredibly expressive eyes. "Well," he said breaking the awkward moment, "may I escort you to dinner, Miss Hatcher?"

"Thank you Captain," she replied, understanding that here he was the captain, never letting down his naval or gentlemanly manners, and always keeping to the task at hand.

Lee smiled as he opened the door and extended a very proper and acceptable elbow to escort his guest to dinner, as Staci basked in the feeling of such gentlemanly conduct extended on her behalf.

~o0o~

"Now remember, you promised to come visit," Staci reminded, knowing she was being a bit forward as she and Lee stood near Seaview's windows. Dinner was over and night had amply fallen to reinsert her back into her life as the Angel of the District.

"And so I did," he replied with a grin. "I was wondering if you would allow me to escort you to the Wellington for dinner and dancing," he offered, proving he had been thinking of his promise as well. The Wellington was an upscale hotel with a very expensive five star restaurant on the other side of town; she'd definitely have to visit a dress shop for that one, but it would be worth it to see Lee in a tux.

"I'd be delighted, Captain," she replied, pleased but not overly expressive to meet his quiet mannered tone while aboard Seaview.

"It will be about a month before I can get away."

"Very well Captain, in a month."

Lee smiled and then guided her by the hand down the flying sub's deck hatch. He was under doctor's orders not to strain his shoulders and ladders were expressively forbidden as he left the flying to Chief Sharkey with James following behind.

"I'll make sure she gets back okay, Lee," he promised as they were both aware she knew her way around the district, but not able to let go of their protective ways quite so easily.

"Thanks James, and no side trips," he jokingly admonished. "We've got a schedule to keep."

"Aye, aye, Sir," he said popping off a sloppy salute to his fellow agent in appreciated jest, and then disappeared below as Chip dogged the outer hatch over him.

Lee returned to the Admiral's Front Porch and gazed out as the flying sub dropped from her berth and then glided through the seas before him.

"Are you ready to turn in, Lee?" Chip asked, moving up alongside him and speaking softly. He knew that though Lee put up a good front, he was still recovering from injuries suffered on the mission.

"Aye, I'm pretty much done in," he admitted to his long-time friend. "How are our guests in the brig?" he asked, still looking out to sea, though the flying sub was long gone by now.

"Completely secure," Chip assured him.

"I'll check in on them in a little bit," Lee said, his eyes focused on the darkness beyond Seaview's flood lights.

"Are you sure, Lee?" Chip asked, knowing that Holly was responsible for the disastrous mission in Venice that resulted in his partner's gruesome death.

"Yeah, I'm sure."

Chip nodded his understanding. "Good night, Lee."

"Good night, Chip."

Chip left the Nose, walking past the Admiral who had watched their exchange, raising an eyebrow of resignation.

Harry walked to the chart table and closed the crash doors as Lee continued to stare outside.

"It wasn't your fault you know?" Harry said, moving alongside Lee and staring out at some distant focal point.

"I should have known... they corralled us right to that dock," he said swallowing a gulp of emotion down.

"Hindsight is twenty-twenty, Lee. At the time, you were both doing your best to answer your country's call. Did Alicia suspect the gondola operator?"

Lee shook his head no. "Neither of us did, it seemed the perfect place to finally make contact. They'd been on our tails all night."

"Nobody could have known that Alicia's cover had been blown, and to calculate the odds of ending up at that particular gondola dock with an assassin for your guide would have been astronomical. It was a well thought out plan by Count Staglione, Lee, made possible by Holly Richard's betrayal. You know that don't you?"

Lee was silent for a few moments, then nodded. "My head knows it, Harry, but I keep wondering if I had done something different... anything... that Alicia might still be alive."

"We only get one chance to live life lad," Harry counseled. "You couldn't have foreseen the betrayal and you simply didn't have the facts to warrant a change in your decisions. You must accept that."

Lee hung his head. "She was a good agent... a good friend... she deserved better."

"You did right by her Lee. You brought in the one responsible for her death and helped to save the lives of no doubt, dozens more of your fellow agents."

"It was a good mission," Lee conceded. "Everyone did their part."

"But you were the bait that made it possible. You can pass on the bravo zulus all you want, lad, but we all know the truth. And it's time you accept it, there's only one person left alive responsible for Alicia Forrester's death and thanks to you, she's in our brig."

Harry placed a hand on his shoulder and rested it there as Lee accepted the quiet comfort.

"I'm going to go see her," he said softly. "I don't think it will be over for me until I do."

"Do you want me to come along?"

"Thanks Harry, but I need to do this alone."

"Very well, Lee," Harry said, adding a pat and stepping away. "Good night, Son."

"Good night, Sir."

~o0o~

Lee made his way to Seaview's brig. The hour was late and the submarine was simulating night time with most corridors and passage ways dimmed. He strapped on a sidearm and headed to the brig where the corridors in this area were well-lit. The alert crewman on guard duty noted his arrival as Lee stepped over and spoke quietly in his ear. He nodded his response and headed down the corridor out of ear shot, posting himself there for the time being.

"Did you come to gloat, Lee?" Holly asked, having heard the clicks of his dress shoes. She'd been expecting a visit, as she swung her legs off the rack and sat facing Lee.

"No," he answered shortly. "I came to ask why?"

"Why what? Why I went rogue? Why I seduced you? Why I let Alicia die?"

Lee stared at her, needing answers but the cockiness of her voice indicated he may not get them.

"I could tell you Lee, but you wouldn't understand. It has _nothing_ to do with duty and honor," she said, standing and walking toward the bars. Her form fitting black jumpsuit hugged her body tightly, showing off dangerous curves and a pleasing cleavage. He kept his face even, staying well back from the bars and leaning casually against the wall. Her beautiful face and bouncy blonde hair did nothing for him anymore, as the inner ugliness of a corrupt woman shined through more clearly than the pleasing outer shell she so easily lured him in with the first time around.

"So you betrayed your country, your fellow agents and your own honor just for cold, hard cash?"

"For a future, Lee," she corrected. "How long does an agent live anyway?" she leaned in close, holding onto the bars as she spoke. "And if we're lucky we get to retire in twenty years with a pension that won't cover our medical bills from years of our bodies taking punishment that one should never have to take."

Lee shook his head. "Sorry Holly, not buying it," he said pulling down his sleeves to reveal rope burns that had yet to heal, inflicted by her hands. "You're in it for the money... lots of it. And you didn't just ' _let_ ' Alicia die, you _killed_ her. You plunged that knife as much as the assassin and you put that bullet in Jeremy's back the same as if you had pulled the trigger yourself," referring to the last agent she sold out, "and you're perfectly willing to sell out the entire list to bolster your Swiss bank account."

"So you _did_ come to gloat," she replied, expertly stepping around the accusations, and heading in a totally new direction. "Or maybe you came to see if what we experienced together was still there," she said seductively. "You felt it, just like I did. We were good together," she said, biting her bottom lip. "The truth is Lee, I was ready to bring you in on the whole deal. We could have had the whole world together... we still could Lee. I didn't kill you because you still mean something to me. Don't you get it?" she asked. "We could still be good together... me and you. You have no idea how much money I have stashed away," she added when she noted he didn't seem to be affected by her 'offer'. "How can you just walk away from all of it... from me?" she asked passionately.

"I could tell you, but you wouldn't understand," Lee replied, "it has _everything_ to do with duty and honor," he finished, turning her own words back on her.

"I'll take you down with me, Lee," she threatened in a complete turnaround of tone. "I'll tell them all about our little romp in the hay, I'll implicate you as nothing more than a jilted lover out for revenge."

"Tell them everything you want," he said without remorse, "it might have even worked," he admitted, pulling four playing cards out from his pocket, fanning them to display an Ace, King, Jack and Ten of spades, then laying it on the floor between them. "Except that you had _this_ in your possession," he said slowly pulling out a Queen of Spades and holding it for her to see. "Well, one like it anyway," he amended.

"You tightened the noose around your _own_ neck, Holly. The last card has been played... and a royal flush beats any hand you have," he said, tossing the last card to lie on top of the other cards before walking away, dismissing both her and her offer in absolute rejection.

Holly watched him walk away, her last chance to freedom played in a losing hand. She knew the charges against her and the evidence ONI had in hand. Following a military trial she would be executed for treason against her country and for the murder of a fellow agent. Her bluff with Crane hadn't worked, her charm was all used up and she was well aware that she was facing the noose Lee spoke of. Despite her knowledge she remained unrepentant for her actions, lamenting only her capture as she stared down at the card that had been her downfall; though the card had fallen with the face down she knew it was the Queen of Spades.

~o0o~

" _For you Alicia,"_ Lee whispered as he walked away from the brig, ready to let the beautiful ONI Agent rest now that her betrayer had been reeled in. He felt the weight of her death lift from his shoulders, and then a breath of warm air brush against his face, suddenly recognizing the scent of Alicia's perfume. He stopped to consider the moment and then smiled, and continued on to his cabin for some much needed rest.

~o0o~

The warm scented air picked up momentum as it passed affectionately through Lee and then on through the corridor. As it traveled it picked up speed and lost its warmth, turning freezing cold. Likewise, the pleasant scent of Alicia's perfume turned sour until it reeked of betrayal and death. It traveled until it reached the brig where Holly Richards was still at the bars gazing down at the cards; there it stopped and transformed into a whirlwind, spreading its scent of death to every corner of the cell. Holly watched in horror as the whirlwind picked up the card lying face down, twirling it in the air while amazingly not disturbing the other playing cards in the hand. The playing card dramatically turned several times, then just as suddenly the whirlwind disappeared through the bulkhead ceiling in a swoosh. The scent of death still lingered in the air as Holly watched the card finish its final revolution before falling across the other cards face up to reveal... the Queen of Spades.

 _ **~Fini~**_

/

A/N – You can find the full version of this story on the Mature Theme page at Seaview Stories, featuring a bonus scene and several slightly expanded scenes.


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